McMillan’s M40A1 Commemorative Marine Corps Sniper Rifle

Considering the significance of the M40 Marine Corps sniper rifle in campaigns throughout the world, and its many variants — the M40A1 introduced in 1966 and subsequent models like the M40A3, and M40A5 now in use today, relatively few companies have produced replicas of the original M40 rifle.

Most M40s were built on the Remington 700 action, but some have a Winchester Model 70 lineage. But it was Remington who came the closest to mass-producing a M40 replica when it produced its M40 Model 700 Commemorative Rifle a few years ago, which you can still find here and there on the used market albeit at much elevated prices. Reports on Internet forums suggest excellent accuracy and satisfaction from owners of these rifles. Indeed, any time you shoot a Remington Model 700, you’re holding the M40 legacy in your hands to some extent. But, still, the original just seems to have had its act together on every detail — it was a dandy wood-stocked tactical rifle that bridged the gap between easy-pointing sporting rifles and those needed for military use.

The original had a tasty walnut stock sans any checkering and it was of a Monte Carlo style; they were not fitted with a bipod or other gadgets, something which seems to negatively plague modern incarnations in my opinion. They used a good leather GI sling, and those who shot them in this fashion sure managed to wreak all sorts of havoc on enemy forces.

As it turns out, Gale McMillan of McMillan USA was involved in the development of the original M40s produced for the Corps, and the company has now rolled out a limited 20-gun run of an exact replica.

Each element of the rifle is historically correct down to the Wichita sling swivels and brown Pachmyer recoil pad. The stock is molded from the same contract mold and is built to the same specs as those delivered by McMillan to the Marines Corps. The action, barrel, bottom metal, and trigger are all hand crafted in the same fashion as the original with correct serial number and proof stampings. To top off the rifle is the last of the available US Optics MST-100 10X scopes, mounted in the historically correct clip-slotted base and rings.

While the rifle sports a period-accurate new woodland camo stock, to accent the collectible angle of the package, McMillan is throwing in one of the original painted stocks that saw active duty.

These stocks are as received from the Marine Corps and are as unique in appearance as the men who used them. They come complete with what ever swivels and bottom metal they were received with, some matching some simply attached, but all original. As with the optics, these returned stocks are the last of their kind and when they are gone, they’re gone for ever.

The McMillan M40A1 Commemorative features an US Optics MST-100 scope replicating the original Unertl.